Skip to main content
PMC home page
Applied and Environmental Microbiology logoLink to Applied and Environmental Microbiology
. 1995 Oct;61(10):3656–3660. doi: 10.1128/aem.61.10.3656-3660.1995

Uptake and retention of Vibrio cholerae O1 in the Eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica.

R L Murphree 1, M L Tamplin 1
PMCID: PMC167666  PMID: 7487003

Abstract

Vibrio cholerae 01, the causative agent of cholera, is known to persist in estuarine environments as endogenous microflora. The recent introduction of V. cholerae 01 into estuaries of the North and South American continents has stimulated the need to determine the effect of controlled purification on reducing this pathogen in edible molluscan shellfish. Experiments defined parameters for the uptake and retention of V. cholerae 01 in tissues of Crassostrea virginica, and these parameters were compared with those for Escherichia coli and Salmonella tallahassee, bacteria which are usually eliminated from moderately contaminated shellfish within 48 h. Oysters accumulated greater concentrations of V. cholerae 01 than E. coli and S. tallahassee. When V. cholerae 01 was exposed to controlled purification at 15, 19 and 25 degrees C over 48 h, it persisted in oysters at markedly higher levels than E. coli and S. tallahassee. The concentration of a V. cholerae 01-specific agglutinin did not positively correlate with the uptake or retention of V. cholerae 01. These data show that state and federally approved controlled purification techniques are not effective at reducing V. cholerae 01 in oysters.

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (243.9 KB).

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Brayton P. R., Tamplin M. L., Huq A., Colwell R. R. Enumeration of Vibrio cholerae O1 in Bangladesh waters by fluorescent-antibody direct viable count. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1987 Dec;53(12):2862–2865. doi: 10.1128/aem.53.12.2862-2865.1987. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Hood M. A., Ness G. E. Survival of Vibrio cholerae and Escherichia coli in estuarine waters and sediments. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1982 Mar;43(3):578–584. doi: 10.1128/aem.43.3.578-584.1982. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Janssen W. A. Oysters: retention and excretion of three types of human waterborne disease bacteria. Health Lab Sci. 1974 Jan;11(1):20–24. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Metcalf T. G., Mullin B., Eckerson D., Moulton E., Larkin E. P. Bioaccumulation and depuration of enteroviruses by the soft-shelled clam, Mya arenaria. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1979 Aug;38(2):275–282. doi: 10.1128/aem.38.2.275-282.1979. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Rowse A. J., Fleet G. H. Effects of water temperature and salinity on elimination of Salmonella charity and Escherichia coli from Sydney rock oysters (Crassostrea commercialis). Appl Environ Microbiol. 1984 Nov;48(5):1061–1063. doi: 10.1128/aem.48.5.1061-1063.1984. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Singleton F. L., Attwell R., Jangi S., Colwell R. R. Effects of temperature and salinity on Vibrio cholerae growth. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1982 Nov;44(5):1047–1058. doi: 10.1128/aem.44.5.1047-1058.1982. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Son N. T., Fleet G. H. Behavior of pathogenic bacteria in the oyster, Crassostrea commercialis, during depuration, re-laying, and storage. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1980 Dec;40(6):994–1002. doi: 10.1128/aem.40.6.994-1002.1980. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Tamplin M. L., Capers G. M. Persistence of Vibrio vulnificus in tissues of Gulf Coast oysters, Crassostrea virginica, exposed to seawater disinfected with UV light. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1992 May;58(5):1506–1510. doi: 10.1128/aem.58.5.1506-1510.1992. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Tamplin M. L., Carrillo Parodi C. Environmental spread of Vibrio cholerae in Peru. Lancet. 1991 Nov 9;338(8776):1216–1217. doi: 10.1016/0140-6736(91)92089-k. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Tamplin M. L., Fisher W. S. Occurrence and characteristics of agglutination of Vibrio cholerae by serum from the eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1989 Nov;55(11):2882–2887. doi: 10.1128/aem.55.11.2882-2887.1989. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Tamplin M. L., Gauzens A. L., Huq A., Sack D. A., Colwell R. R. Attachment of Vibrio cholerae serogroup O1 to zooplankton and phytoplankton of Bangladesh waters. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1990 Jun;56(6):1977–1980. doi: 10.1128/aem.56.6.1977-1980.1990. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Tamplin M. L., Martin A. L., Ruple A. D., Cook D. W., Kaspar C. W. Enzyme immunoassay for identification of Vibrio vulnificus in seawater, sediment, and oysters. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1991 Apr;57(4):1235–1240. doi: 10.1128/aem.57.4.1235-1240.1991. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Timoney J. F., Abston A. Accumulation and elimination of Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium by hard clams in an in vitro system. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1984 May;47(5):986–988. doi: 10.1128/aem.47.5.986-988.1984. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Twedt R. M., Madden J. M., Hunt J. M., Francis D. W., Peeler J. T., Duran A. P., Hebert W. O., McCay S. G., Roderick C. N., Spite G. T. Characterization of Vibrio cholerae isolated from oysters. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1981 Jun;41(6):1475–1478. doi: 10.1128/aem.41.6.1475-1478.1981. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Applied and Environmental Microbiology are provided here courtesy of American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

RESOURCES